


Anelven Spellsmith's Essays on the History of Thedas

by queenofzan



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games)
Genre: Gen, In-Universe Academia, Meta
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-01
Updated: 2018-10-01
Packaged: 2019-07-23 13:56:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 2,396
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16160288
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/queenofzan/pseuds/queenofzan
Summary: Several essays written from an in-universe perspective (approximately 9:30-40 Dragon) about Thedosian history.





	1. Bias in Thedosian History

**Author's Note:**

> well what do YOU do when you have no internet and your computer is still boxed up

### Bias in Thedosian History

Thedosian history is dominated by only a few voices, despite a diverse population with many different traditions. Southern texts are almost exclusively from a Chantry-biased viewpoint, and most authors are not as forthcoming about it as Brother Genitivi, who at least includes his bias in the title of his most influential work. Northern works are equally biased, if in a different direction, due to strong Imperial influence from Tevinter.

Yet where are the voices of the elves, supposedly free in their alienages? Where are the voices of the Alamarri, Avvar, Chasind, Fog Warriors, and other human groups pushed aside or forgotten by kingdoms and empires? Where are the voices of the Vashoth and Tal-Vashoth, to balance out the stories of their more militantly religious brethren? Despite having the time and means in most places, commoners, peasants, and merchants do not contribute to the tales of mage and Chantry scholars, or even the fiction of nobles, as in Orlais and the Free Marches. And while Orzammar literature and histories are guarded zealously by their Shapers, what reason is there for the lack of surface dwarves’ perspectives?

Thedosian history is rife with bias, elevating human perspectives on a continent to which they are not even native–a fact you’ll be hard-pressed to find in most human histories, but one difficult to deny after hearing old elven and dwarven tales predating Tevinter. The Chantry’s early adoption of printing and scholarship has ensured a human-oriented, magic-negative historical tradition.

Yet examining even standard tales of Thedosian history through the perspective of an “outsider” yields immediate contradictions and insight into what is being left out. Take for example the story of the Exalted March on the Dales. Why did Orlesian forces march on the Dales? Because they no longer followed the Maker. There were other factors–Red Crossing, persistent rumors of elves attacking human travelers near their territory, the elves’ isolationism–but the ultimate reason for the conquest of the Dales, the reason it is viewed as an Exalted March instead of pure expansionist greed, is that the elves of the Dales had turned from the Maker and returned to the worship of their old elven gods.

If this is the real reason, then why has there been no Exalted March on Rivain? It is well-known that many Rivaini still follow the Qun, and more ignore Chantry prohibitions of apostasy, venerating their hedge mage Seers and allowing free travel in and out of Circles. Surely either of these two reasons would be enough to spur an Exalted March, yet Chantry and Orlesian conflict with Rivain has been minor.

If this is the real reason, then why have the Exalted Marches against the Tevinter Imperium ceased? With the Imperium weakened by constant war with the Qunari, it would have been an advantageous time to turn them back to the Maker by force of an Exalted March at any time in the last four ages.

The only conclusions a careful student of history can draw is that the consequences of Marching against the Dales did not outweigh the benefits, and that smiting or converting heretics was not a large enough benefit on its own to justify an Exalted March. The fact that most Thedosians, especially Orlesians, accept the stated explanation for the Exalted March on the Dales is frankly astonishing to this historian…. but then again, why would someone question a story that benefits them if believed?

–Anelven Spellsmith

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Anelven Spellsmith" is a somewhat obvious pseudonym for, guess what, an elven mage historian.
> 
> I may have read through all the codex entries at once and started cross-referencing things.


	2. The Commandments of the Maker

### The Commandments of the Maker 

This historian’s own biases as an elf showed themselves clearly in my first essay, and to my fellow non-humans, I apologize. It is the easiest way to spot the holes in Chantry history for me, but replacing a human-oriented history with an elven-oriented one is hardly an improvement.

So today let us examine a tale with different authorial biases in play: the Chant itself. Specifically Transfigurations 1:1-5, which is familiar to most as the Commandments of the Maker–particularly the second commandment, popularly quoted as “magic exists to serve man, and never to rule over him”. Certainly anyone could agree that “foul and corrupt are they/who have taken His gift/and turned it against His children”. However, most people are also aware of the disagreements over the intent of this commandment, typified by the Imperial Chantry’s schism with the Orlesian Chantry. This commandment is oft-quoted in debates personal and political, used to silence opposition and assert one’s own Rightness.

Yet there are five commandments of the Maker. You might now know this without knowledge of the Chant, or if your knowledge thereof is taken from popular discourse, as it is for many rural non-humans, or even illiterate humans in areas too remote to have a local Chantry in which to hear the Chant of Light.

The third commandment of the Maker expressly forbids “harm without provocation” of any of His children. The number of times I have seen this commandment used to explain an action of the Empire, the Chantry, or any king is small enough I could show you with one hand. Yet this is a commandment of the Maker, of equal importance as the second. There is at least as much room for argument in the wording of this commandment as in the second, if not more, yet there have been no Exalted Marches or Chantry schisms over its interpretation.

The fourth commandment, meanwhile, is routinely ignored by even good Andrastians, which says the Maker shall judge their lies against the one Truth He knows. Yet most bear false witness or deceive another at one time in their life. Most are probably benign lies, meant to preserve feelings or surprises, so the tellers of these lies feel just enough. Some are of an importance far above that of the average person–troop movements, royal whereabouts, treasure locations. Yet keeping information to oneself is hardly different from bearing false witness, and one often leads to the other. To keep a secret, one may mislead, and then one is violating a commandment of the Maker. Again, there are no Exalted Marches or Chantry schisms over this commandment, even though it may be the most frequently broken of all.

The enforcement and use of the Maker’s commandments is not equally weighted, though the commandments themselves are. Again, a critically-minded person cannot help but draw conclusions from this situation, and the conclusions are not especially favorable to the average Andrastian.

–Anelven Spellsmith


	3. The Chantry's Influence

### The Chantry’s Influence

One might question why a professed historian is addressing the Chant. After all, there are plenty of Chantry scholars already; why spend time analyzing it if Chantry bias is one of my primary targets?

Despite its position as a religious institution, and one theoretically neutral in political matters, the Chantry has been historically, and continues to be, a major influence on Thedosian history and politics. The same man who united the Empire of Orlais founded the Chantry. When the Exalted Marches were declared, it was usually Orlesian troops marching. The Chantry has direct control of Templars all over Thedas, and indirect control of Circles as well. The Chantry influences or even overrides the laws of the countries of Thedas, allowing Templars to do things no other military order would be allowed to do without repercussions from king or countrymen. Even in countries where no king or head of state ever declared the country to follow the Chant of Light, the Chant nevertheless is the primary religious institution and a major center of law.

When a Chasind tribe or a Qunari force slaughter an entire family or camp of missionaries, they are declared monsters. Yet the Right of Annulment grants Templars the right to kill every inhabitant of a Circle, regardless of age, guilt, or magical ability, which they have exercised thirteen times in seven ages–more than twice every fifty years. When a Chasind or Qunari group is said to have taken a child or young person, they are called kidnappers or murderers. Templars are often called upon specifically to take children away from their families, whom those children may never see again. These situations are different in the eyes of the public because of the Chantry.

When Grey Wardens from Orlais wished to enter Ferelden at the beginning of the Fifth Blight, Teryn Loghain Mac Tir protested the idea of foreign soldiers in Ferelden territory–yet apparently never blinked an eye at a large military Chantry encampment in Lake Calenhad, not far from Redcliffe, well known as the key to taking control of Ferelden. That the Templars were probably Ferelden by nationality may have helped, but there were certainly Orlesian Templars among the Templars at Kinloch Hold–as well as likely Nevarrans, Marchers, Antivans, and possibly others, as the Templar Order accepts recruits regardless of country of origin. Many of the supposedly Orlesian Grey Wardens Teyrn Mac Tir objected to were likely from different countries entirely, and the Wardens as an organization are based out of the Anderfels. The Chantry, on the other hand, has always been based in Orlais. Yet Chantry influence was never banned or objected to from Ferelden nationals, even at the height of Orlais’ strength in Ferelden.

The Chantry, as noted in a previous essay, also became the heart of Thedosian scholarship by adopting printing presses early. Many, if not most, history texts are written by a Brother or Sister of the Chantry. Papers about the Chant, copies of sermons, and verses of the Chant itself are mainstays of the publishing industry, for which there is always demand. Regardless of whether this was intended by any member of the Chantry hierarchy at any point, let alone agreed upon by any authorities, it has led to a continent of readers with no access to other perspectives than the Chantry’s, except by word of mouth or oral tradition. This spreads the Chantry’s influence further, to the point where disagreeing with religious doctrines are enough to make it difficult to publish a series of historical essays, because it might cause trouble for the publisher.

Ultimately, discussing Thedosian history after Andraste is impossible without discussing the Chantry, because it has been a huge force in Thedas since its inception. Discussing Thedosian history before Andraste without bringing the Chantry into it is difficult because so much of the research and recording of said history has been done by Chantry scholars, and sometimes even altered to better fit the narrative of the Chantry. Excising the Chantry from history, or pretending its influence is only natural and therefore unworthy of discussion, is a disservice to history, and to everyone who wishes to know more about the past. Only by examining the ways in which the Chantry and its teaching affects the ways we think of and interpret history can we begin to see past the Chantry bias much of Thedosian history falls prey to.

–Anelven Spellsmith


	4. What Everybody Knows

### What Everybody Knows

Ask someone in your local market what happened to Arlathan, the ancient capital of elven society, and they will probably tell you it fell to the Tevinter Imperium. They may go on to say that the ruins of the city remain lost because the Tevinters so thoroughly razed the city. This is something everybody knows.

The problem is, there is no proof of this. None. There never has been. There is, in fact, evidence to suggest that Arlathan was declining or entirely gone before the Tevinter Imperium was even powerful enough to raze a city, let alone destroy an entire civilization. It is not a great deal of evidence, but a small amount of evidence to suggest Arlathan was gone well before Tevinter could do anything about it is still more evidence than there is to support the idea that Tevinter destroyed elven civilization.

Unless you are also a historian or Dalish, you probably did not know this. If you were a historian, though, you’d know that in 9:18 Dragon, Alstead the Sage put forth this idea. If you were Dalish, or had a great deal of contact with a Dalish clan that trusted you, you would almost certainly be aware of Alstead the Sage’s Investigation into Arlathan, as it is one of the few books about Arlathan and Dalish society by a human that any Dalish elf has any amount of respect for. And in the years since 18 Dragon, investigation has borne out some of Alstead’s theories, if not his main idea. Accepting the idea that Tevinter destroyed Arlathan makes many recent discoveries of elven ruins and artifacts confusing and difficult to reconcile. Magical investigations into the age of certain sites has put many ancient Arlathan ruins falling into decay well before the height of the Imperium, and Dalish language experts have determined many ruins to use archaic word forms that would likewise put them earlier than Tevinter.

Granted, these discoveries do not decide the issue once and for all. There is always the possibility of interference from the Fade, unusual weather patterns, or simply bad information causing interference with these sorts of investigations, but it has been enough to convince most historians that we do not know what happened to Arlathan, and it is no longer accepted among historians to claim “Tevinter did it” without an accompanying piece of evidence.

Yet the stranger in your local market, or the merchants who sold you this pamphlet, or almost anyone you might happen to ask, would still tell you Arlathan fell to the Tevinter Imperium.

Common knowledge is not always accurate knowledge. Blaming things on the Imperium is easy, and feels right to most people, so they do it. They do not need evidence to convince them, or to tell their children that’s what happened to Arlathan. Even the Imperium itself didn’t require evidence, as if they have any, they haven’t shared it with the rest of the historical community. The few Tevinters I have spoken to were happy to take the blame for the fall of Arlathan, whether out of some self-loathing ease to convince themselves of their homeland’s atrocities or pride at their homeland having accomplished something so probably difficult. With no evidence, all of Thedas is happy to believe something few scholars now accept.

If nothing else, I wish for you–and for all my readers–to ask why things are so, why people believe things, and to always cast a critical eye on things everybody knows.

–Anelven Spellsmith


End file.
